Field
The present disclosure generally relates to a card extraction apparatus for extracting a card from a card storage apparatus.
Related Art
Worldwide each day millions of financial transactions and identification verifications are conducted using standard sized instruments, such as for example credit cards, driver licenses, debit cards, medical cards, gift cards, health club cards, and customer rewards cards. Safe storage and transportation of these instruments necessitates a compartmentalized card storage apparatus. Typically, a tight slot and sheath is provided in the card storage apparatus, sized appropriately for the standard sized instruments, into which each card is inserted. Once inserted through the slot and into the sheath, a portion of the card protrudes outwardly from the slot, providing a user with the ability to extract the card by gripping the outwardly protruding portion and applying an extracting force. Most people in industrialized nations around the world carry varieties of such card storage apparatuses, such as for example wallets. Indeed, the use of such standard sized financial and identification instruments has rapidly become a necessity for functioning in the industrialized world.
An unfortunate byproduct of such safe storage and transportation devices such as the card storage apparatus is difficultly in extracting the financial or identification instrument at a point in time when such an instrument is necessary to conduct a transaction or identification verification. Because of the importance of securely storing such instruments, the aforementioned slot and sheath tend to be very tight, often making it troublesome for a user to extract the instrument. This problem is further compounded by the fact that identification verification usually occurs simultaneously with a financial transaction, which can require a user to extract two or more cards, depending on the level of verification security required.
Because card storage apparatuses typically are designed such that a user may use her fingers to grip the portion of the instrument protruding above the slot, outwardly of the sheath, the normal method of extraction involves using fingers to apply a force to remove the card. When the sheath and/or slot are too tight to be removed by application of force by fingers, the user has a problem continuing the transaction or identification verification. Current solutions for such a problem are limited. One method involves using hardware for extraction, such as for example a pair of pliers
In the modern day, most standard size financial transaction and identification verification cards have magnetic strips containing important, sensitive information. Demagnetization of such magnetic strips can cause delay or in extreme cases failure in the transaction or verification process. Long term exposure to materials lining card storage apparatuses can lead to demagnetization of the magnetic strip, particularly because typically the magnetic strip is disposed upon the back side of such stored cards, which tends to be the side in physical contact with the card storage apparatus.
Many people living in industrialized nations are growingly dependent upon the aforementioned transaction and identification cards and have had the misfortune of misplacing such a card. Of course, realization that such a card has been misplaced often times occur when that particular card is needed. Rapidly locating the misplaced card can be a matter of urgency. It is often the case that such a misplaced card is less than a few feet away from the card storage apparatus, such as for example in a purse, backpack, duffle bag, suitcase, or briefcase.
The present teachings describe apparatuses and methods which allow a user to more safely and easily extract a card from a card storage apparatus than current solutions provide. The present teachings overcome the aforementioned issues associated with current state of the art solutions, as will now be described in greater detail.